Dishwasher - Help!

Gleek

Hello

I am a keen cook but I hate the washing up that it comes with.

I am interested in purchasing a dishwasher. I have approx £150 towards it now and I'm looking at £250ish or below.

I've never used a dishwasher before, but I do know I'd get a lot more cooked if I had one :rotfl:

Can anyone recommend anything/give me some tips for looking after it/what to buy/not to buy with regards to things like calgon etc? Best sort of tablets or salts?

Complete and utter novice with regards to what it entails.

Thanks in advance

fannyanna

Have you considered getting a second hand dishwasher? :money:

drummer_666

i picked up a dishwasher on ebay for £60, that was for a silver one, white ones are going cheaper

try gumtree too

also managed to get an oven for £50 and a brand new gas hob but damaged packaging for £10.50!

katejo

Gleek wrote: »

Hello

I am a keen cook but I hate the washing up that it comes with.

I am interested in purchasing a dishwasher. I have approx £150 towards it now and I'm looking at £250ish or below.

I've never used a dishwasher before, but I do know I'd get a lot more cooked if I had one :rotfl:

Can anyone recommend anything/give me some tips for looking after it/what to buy/not to buy with regards to things like calgon etc? Best sort of tablets or salts?

Complete and utter novice with regards to what it entails.

Thanks in advance

I have just got a dishwasher for the first time as well. I have had it for about 3 weeks and I am finding it really useful. Mine cost a bit more than you want to pay. However I got it from John lewis and did notice that they were offering a Hotpoint one which had positive reviews (I nearly chose it) for about £260. It has a 2 year guarantee instead of the usual 1 year.

I can't advise you on tablets or salt as I have only tried one type so far.

greyteam1959

In my opinion Calgon tablets are an absolute total waste of money.
Have a look at the price of a pack next time you are in the supermarket !!!
Two years of using them & you could buy a new flippin dishwasher..
Salt you must use but its dead cheap.

Cazza

I use the Sainsburys basics tablets, I do add salt and rinse aid too, but not had any problems. I've not tried cutting them in half, but the dishwasher is always very full and only goes on every 3 days ish so that might be pushing my luck a bit!

McKneff

mervyn11 wrote: »

In my opinion Calgon tablets are an absolute total waste of money.
Have a look at the price of a pack next time you are in the supermarket !!!
Two years of using them & you could buy a new flippin dishwasher..
Salt you must use but its dead cheap.

I agree totally about the Calgon, its all a marketing ploy.

Ive had a dishwasher now for over 20 years, (only ever 2 in that time) and have never used anything but the liquid and salt.

I couldnt be without mine, brilliant, just about everything goes in mine apart from wooden handled cutlery.

If I had the choice of my washing machine breaking down and the dishwasher I would plump to keep the dishwasher. After all, I cant take my mucky pots to the launderette lol.


(Christmas day, 5 minutes after eating, everything is cleared away and no washing up, great stuff:j:j:j)

pinkteapot

OP - do you already have plumbing available for a dishwasher (a place for it with suitable pipes, as you'd need for a washing machine)? If not, don't forget to factor this cost in....

breadlinebetty

I've had a few dishwashers over the last 20 years or more and I'd hate to be without one now. You can even cook a whole salmon in one!;)

I've used all the different liquids, tablets etc and I personally think the loose powder is the best. I use Finish but Sainsbury's do a good one too. Always, always make sure you've got it topped up with dishwasher salt, otherwise your glasses will come out smeared.

I also use Rinse Aid and keep it topped up.

You can alter the degree at which the Rinse Aid comes out - I usually have it central.

The obvious one is to make sure you remove as much food as possible from your plates and saucepans, and it's a good idea to slush them first under the cold water tap before putting them in the dishwasher.

Always empty your bottom tray first (prevents any possible drips of water from spilling if you haven't loaded it correctly, or if a glass accidently turns over!:()

Never put long knives in the cutlery tray......

Try and clean the dishwasher every so often, too - it does make a difference and keeps it smelling nice and fresh.

I find some people graduate when buying dishwashers and tend to go for more expensive ones when they need replacing. My best one (without a shadow of doubt) is the Miele. They are costly - but they're the Rolls Royce of dishwashers. You have a lovely sliding cutlery tray at the top of the machine - so much better than the baskets at the bottom - and gives you much more room. Plus, Miele are sooo quiet! You can't hear them at all!

You'll never want to be without a dishwasher once you've got one!! Though I disagree with the poster who says she'd rather have a dishwasher than washing machine.......the thought of hand-washing sheets makes me want to faint!!:eek:

sillygoose

My Bosch is 12 years old and going strong, gave up putting rinse aid or salt in it (the tablets contain sufficient salt and a rinse aid layer these days) Use cheap Lidl tablets (rated by the consumer mags as good as any) Everything comes out clean and streak free every time.

I do use the Aldi dishwasher cleaner once in a while - its a plastic bottle that has a cleaning chemical in and a wax seal, you put it in upside down in the cutlery basket (without any dishes of course) and run it. At the right time the wax melts and the chemical is released to clean it. Works well.

How you load it matters, you will get the hang of it. most important is that items made of different metals are not very close, with the salt they form a battery and can cause corrosion or electroplating transfer! (just keep silver and steel and Stainless Steels opposite ends the cutlery tray.

Its surprising how much a dishwasher can actually shift, it washes differently to normal washing up with a detergent. Dishwasher chemicals contain enzymes that 'digest' the food and at 65 degrees for an hour.

Avoid putting things in with sticky labels like jam jars, the glue just melts under the heat and you end up with sticky gum on things, and I doubt it does the dishwasher much good either.

McKneff

No, no, you mis understand me,

I meant I could take my washing to the launderette but I couldnt take my dirty pots there.

Hand washing laundry, I'm too old for that, been there, got the T shirt in my earlier life lol